Flying machine



July 24, 1928.

` T. M. FINLEY FLYING MACHINE Filed March 23, 1927 IT mv v9 N mx), Y" .JIIMHMUQFIlli--: -llfllhl ,-Ifllfllllllllllu:lml=\ l v1 n n SEE m m m u Ru Q July 24, ,1928. 1,677,962

T. M. FINLEY FLYING MACHINE Filed March 2s, 1927 2 sheets-sheet 2 by eliminating head resistance,

Patented July 24, 1928.

UNITED STATES 2PATENT oFFlcE.'

moms n. HNLEY, or s'r. LoUIs, mssounr.

FLYING MACHINE.

Application ledlarch 23, 1927, ,Serial No. 177,623.

l0 rear end.

Large lighter than air dirigible machines of the present known types have three main` resistances to which may be attributed their lack of successful operation.

What is meant by head resistance is the air that. banks up in resistance at the front4 of themachines body. The body, bein necessarily ver thick, naturally, at any egJree of speed wi l collect tremendous volumes of air, which creates great resistance and causes the machine to be slow. Further, its resistance, in opposition to the propelling power, throws an enormous strain on the framework of the body of the machine. It also causes the body of' the machine to pivot at the front or contact end which gives a wrong action to the means of control, makin the machine very slow in its movementl un er the operation of its controlling means.

The 4back-lash resistance is caused by the displaced air from the tremendous body ,accumulated at the front end of the machine. This air flows back over the shoulders of the machine and leaves the mach-ines body flying 3.5 out away from the machine as snow, illes from the runners of a sleigh, but, unlike thev snow, it turns again and strikes inwardly l and forwardly until it comes in contact with the body of the machine again. The air co'm- 40 ing into contact with the body causes :in

impact which creates a resistance to the -forward movement of the machine. Then the air rebounds, leaving the body again, .fo1 m' ing an arc and coming back and 'striking' the body again and again until the air leaves the rear end of the machine. At each vpoint impact or back-lash resistance results.

At points between where the back-lash Aair strikes the machine and where it again come-s into contact with the machine are rings that are clear of air ,encircling the body and are therefore vacuums. .These vacuum rin s are formed all the way around the mac ines body and create the tremendous resisting forces known as vacuum or such resistances.

,its construction a body 1 The vacuum as it occurs in aeronautics is known but vnot fully appreciated. A vacuum may be of the greatest benefit to a machine or the greatest obstacle conditioned upon its locatlon. In aeroplanes it is foundthat the vacuum above the Wings accounts for `of its lift, and without it the aeroplane could not Hy. Therefore, it is of the greatest advantage to the aeroplane. In the cigarshaped llghter than air machine the Vacuums occur .around the body andl in its immediate wake 1n opposition to its Hight, and no benefit to the machine is obtained fromv such vacuums. This vacuum resistance is the greatest obstacle to the progress or speed of the machine.

The present invention is desi ned to eliminate all of the foregoing disa vantages and to transfer the vacuum suck from the back of the machine to the front thereof and thereby convert what has heretofore been an obstacle to the forward progress of the machlne 1nto a means of assisting the forward movement of the machine.

With these and other objects in view, the

invention consists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings and pointed out 1n the clalms yhereto ap ended, it\ bein understood that various c anges in the orm, proportion and minor details of construction, w1th1n the scope of the claims,may be resorted without departing from the s irit or sacrificlng any of the advantages o .the invention. 4 1

y In the drawings Figure 1 is a plan viewvof a flyingfmachine embodying the improvements of the present lnvention and .illustrating in dotted lines the arrangement of the longitudinal channel and the flaring mouth or entrance.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of Y' the same.

F1g. 3 1s a transverse sectional view taken 4substantiall 'alon the'line 3 3 f F' 1, where the air strikes the machines body this j y g 0 1g of Flgl Fig. 4 is a. similar view on the line 4 4 In t e accompanying drawin s in' which is illustrated the preferred embo iment of the invention the ying machine comprises in n rovidedv throughout its lower portion witli a central lon tudinal channel 2 having a flaring or su stantially funnel shaped mouthor entrance 3 and extending the entire length of the ioo v bodyl to the rear end'thereof. The rear end portion 4 of the body of lthe machine is tapered and curved longitudinally 'as shown to afford the desire-d stream line for,-

I mation. The body which isy approximately arranged at a slight angle to each other. The

side walls -of the channel are straight and vertical and present plane faces and the top wall 11 is horizontal and presents a plane surface. These angularly related sections or portions of the exterior outline of the body enables the material to be stretched and properly secured on the framework which consists of a series of transversely disposed frames 12 arranged at suitable intervals and connected at the periphery of the body by suitable longitudinal frame members 13. As the particular. con-struction of the framework of the body of the machine does not .constitute a portion of the present invention and as any desired construction of framework ma be employed a detailed description of t e construction of the frame-work and illustration thereof are deemed unnecessary. The gas chambers 14 are arranged in the spaces between the transverse frames 12 and at thefront and rear ends of the body and may be of any desired construction as will be 'readily understood.

- The approximately funnel shaped mouth 3 which is open at the bottom of the channel4 has top and side walls 15 of uniform configuration and of approximately sigmoidal contour consisting of convex outer portions 16 4and concave inner portions 17 which as indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings recede y from the straight lines a b indicating the direct path of the air drawnv intothe funnel shaped entrance by the front propellers 18 which`may beon'e or more in number and which are arranged adjacent the inner end of the funnel shaped entrance approximately in the position illustrated in Figa 1 and 2 ofthe drawings. The machine is also equipped with one or more rear propellers 19 located in the longitudinal channel as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2 ofthe drawing. Any number of the ropellers, may-of course, be employed and t ey may be arranged at any desired points along. the longitudinal channel. The air which ordinarily packs at the front of thebody of machinesl of the cigar type is drawn linto the funnel Shaped entrance to the channel 2. and will travel in a direct line' substantially as indicated by the lines a b, thereby'removing the/head resstance caused by air banking at the front of the machine and at the same time producing vacuums at the convex and concave porof the funnel shaped entrance recedes from` the straight line a b. Also at the inner portion of the wall of the funnel shaped entrance-the concave portion 17 recedes' from the straight line a b producing a vacuum. These vacuums result in a forward suck on the body of the machine and exert a positive forward pull or rather a forward push assisting and accelerating the forward progress of the machine instead of resisting and ilnpeding the machine in its progress as is the case where the air packs and banks in front lof the machine producing what is known as the head resistance in flying machinos having a body of the cigar type.

The air drawn into the funnel-shaped entrance to the channel travels rapidly through ,the channel and escapes at the rear end thereof and results in a siphoning effect of the air 'at the air surrounding the rear en'd of the machine." This eliminates the rear vacuum suck and prevents the shocks and jars incident to back-lash and vacuum or suck resistance -and prevents the drag incident to thevacuum suck at the rear end of the ordinary ying machine havin a body of the cigar type. The stream curvature ofthe' rear portion of the body cooperates with the channel in causing the sipho'ning effect and the smooth passage of the air along the'exterior of the` body.

' It will be clear that the present invention is designed for the express purpose of getting away from the pack of head-resisting air, and the rolling alr'around the exterior of the body of the machine and thereby removing head-resistance, back-lash and vacuum resistance. The present invention not only eliminates thef above mentioned resist'- -ance by compressing the air by virtue of its propellers before the air reaches the contact or front end of the machine but creates at" this contact end of the machine two different sets of vacuums that suck the machine forward with the same powerful force which sucks an aeroplane up into the air. A large body moving at a high rate of speed throu h the atmosphere will create a bumpy con ition of air along its'surface, even though therebe no displaced *air from the front of the machine moving falong'the body. This "bumpyl condition`of air is not conductive to smooth running5 lbut will cause little -eddies and Whirls of air, creating small vac-l uums that give more or less resistance and creates local strains iand stresses that it is very desirable to" avoid. In order to get away from 'this condition around the outer 'I walls of the machine4 and to eliminate any possibility of a vacuum in the :immediatey ine Wake of the machine, a reverse or obverse siphon end is produced by the tapered curved rear end and the longitudinal channel. he air passing through the channel from the propellers creates a large current with great momentum. This draws the air from around the outer surface of the body over jhe siphon shaped or stream line end and aiyii around the walls throug out the entire distance from the front to the rear end of the machine, thereby correcting the bumpy conditions which would otherwlseexist.

What is claimed is: y

1. In a flying machine, a bod having a longitudinal channel open at the ottom and provided with a substantially funnel-shaped entrance, the walls of the entrance' having receding concave inner portions arranged to form a vacuum or suck when air is drawn into the funnel-shaped entrance whereby head resistance is eliminated and a forward impulse created.

test shows that it 'strai htens out the` 2. In a flying machine, a bod having a longitudinal channel open at the ottom and provided with a substantially funnel-shaped entrance, the walls of the the entrance belng provided with receding convex outer portions and receding concave inner portions arranged to form vacuums when air is drawn into the entrance by propellers whereby head resistance is eliminated and a forward impulse created.

3. A flying vided with .a longitudinal channel having a substantially funnel-shaped entrance provided with a convex outer portion and a concave inner portion adapted to form vacuums when air is drawn into the entrance,

said body being also provided With a tap-v.

ered rear end curved longitudinally to roduce a siphoning effect on the exterlor o the body longitudinally thereof when air is driven through the said channel.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature.

THOMAS M. FINLEY.

machine having a body pro- 

